Welcome to your Monday, CivMixers. It’s time to make things happen.
The absolutely glorious weather of the weekend is over, but there isn’t any rain in the forecast – not today, anyway. We’ll have partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-to-low 80s, according to The Weather Channel, with showers creeping in late tonight and the humidity building.
Here are some headlines you might have missed while enjoying yourself over the past two days, and also the latest this morning…
President Donald Trump said he’d prefer to run for re-election against Joe Biden, suggesting that the former vice president won’t be the “great candidate” Hillary Clinton was in 2016.
Trump shrugged off the brutal dismembering of Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist, just days after a U.N. report described how a team of Saudi assassins called Khashoggi a “sacrificial animal” before his murder.
Joe Sestak, a former congressman from Pennsylvania and Navy admiral, became the 25th Democrat to join the crowd of 2020 presidential hopefuls.
Seventh-generation daredevil Nik Wallenda, 40, and his sister Lijana, 42, started at opposite ends of a 1,300-foot wire strung 25 stories up between 1 and 2 Times Square in Manhattan and crossed in the middle, in a sweat-inducing stunt aired live on ABC.
…This was Lijana’s first high wire feat since a 2017 near-fatal accident in Florida that left her and four other members of the Wallenda gang injured.
New York City’s love affair with death-defying stunts is well established, dating at least to Harry Houdini’s 1912 escape from handcuffs, leg-irons and a sealed, weighted crate that was submerged in the East River.
In Albany, the state Capitol will be quiet after a flurry of end-of-session action last week, as state lawmakers capped off what the governor said was the most “productive legislative session in modern history.”
In early January, as Democrats took control of the state Senate after decades of Republican domination, much debate ensued about just how far to the political left New York would be taken in the 2019 legislative session. The answer: to the far left in many instances.
Albany installed red light cameras in 2015 and now has 35 cameras at 20 intersections, which generated 47,170 tickets between 2015 and 2018. Here’s a list of the top red light camera intersections by violations.
A Times Union analysis (in part using data compiled by All Over Albany – RIP) of the red light camera program since its inception found that crashes at intersections with cameras decreased even while the number of tickets issued fell far short of expectations.
Despite the Democratic majority in both the Senate and Assembly, neither side partnered together on most limo industry reforms – with each house instead passing separate bills on their own that did not have bi-legislative support.
A RPI student is suing the school over his suspension for sexual misconduct, claiming he is the victim of a disciplinary process that “was directly and indirectly designed to discriminate against male students on the basis of their sex.”
A 31-year-old Galway man was ticketed after Saratoga County Sheriff’s deputies said he crashed a boat while drunk on Sacandaga Lake near the Majestic Marina in the town of Day.
Someone needs to step up and buy the used bookstore Dove & Hudson in Albany, because its longtime owner, Dan Wedge, 70, is looking to retire – at some point – and would like his legacy to outlast him.
The delayed reopening of the South Troy Pool as a result of longer-than-expected renovations has become an issue in the city’s Democratic mayoral primary, which is taking place tomorrow.
Troy Mayor Patrick Madden recently announced the approval of a tentative labor contract agreement by Civil Service Employees Association, Local 1000 AFSCME, AFL-CIO for the City of Troy Unit of the Rensselaer County Local 842.
There’s another primary tomorrow – a race for district attorney in Queens – that pits Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her progressive followers against the establishment of the county’s storied Democratic machine.
If it seems like mosquitoes are worse this year, it’s because they are – thanks to the wet weather and roller coaster temperatures we’ve been experiencing of late.
Juneteeth, which commemorates the emancipation of black people enslaved in America, was celebrated in the Capital Region over the weekend.
Organizers, endorsers, and passionate protestors made their voices heard Saturday at the Capital District Reproductive Justice March and Rally. Rep. Paul Tonko was on hand, and delivered remarks.
If you’re a pet owner in Gloversville and own more than six dogs or cats, you could be in legal trouble thanks to a new ordinance, which limits the number of cats, dogs or domesticated pets to six per single family dwelling in the city.
AARP attorneys from out of state offered legal assistance to Saint Clare’s Hospital pensioners battling to get their pension benefits back.
A long-planned Blessing of the Bikes ceremony for motorcycle enthusiasts became a scene of mourning and reflection in New Hampshire Sunday as about 400 people paid tribute to seven bikers killed in a devastating collision with a pickup truck.
Ida Lake supporters held a “float in” this past weekend in support of efforts to save the dam that creates the sprawling preserve and the recreational opportunities it affords City of Troy residents.
The Albany County Land Bank is the first in the state to pursue cluster development through its banking of properties, which has allowed the nonprofit to collect dozens of properties through the county’s foreclosure process that can be marketed as one project and sale.
A Russian immigrant and her two children were found dead in Staten Island, seven years after she became a citizen in a White House ceremony.
Community members will celebrate the 1st annual Elijah Cancer Day at Krank Park in Albany from 3:00 to 8 00 p.m.
Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, who was ordered to vacate Santa Anita Park after the 30th horse fatality occurred on Saturday and the fourth under his care, will be racing at both NYRA facilities, Belmont Park at Saratoga Race Course.
RIP Judith Krantz, the best-selling author whose novels have more than 80 million copies in print, has died. She passed away from natural causes on Saturday in her Bel Air, California home at the age of 91.
If you’re following the Women’s World Cup, the US plays today at noon against Spain.
Want to feel old? Jackson Murphy, also known as “Lights Camera Jackson,” who was just 7 years old when he got his start as a film critic with Radio Disney, is now 20 and about to start his final semester of St. Rose in the fall. He’s still doing his movie critic thing.
Photo credit: Fred Coffey.
